Writing submissions

Sadly I do not have an answer to your questions but several more of my own. THe only really helpful piece of info I can offer is this: I found the artist I am working with on conceptart.org So far things are working out well, but I seem to be having a difficult time landing an agent. If you do indeed look for an artist I would suggest looking there. I believe that often times money is involved though and this can be rough if you do not have a guarantee of a sale. There are a number of agents that look at graphic novel scripts, but I think most of them want at least some amount of artwork to go with it. I would look at this nice list that was compiled by a fellow Absolute write forum user. http://niki-smith.com/about/graphic-novel-agents/

I would do a bit of research on the agents, as I think some are only interested in childrens works. That and my best wishes are all I have to offer.

As for the questions that I have:

When submitting to a publisher am I Just supposed to send a query letter about myself? That is what I get from reading dynamite comics submission guidelines. If that is the case, without out submittied any work why would they bother to follow up? I see the same sort of thing from Dark Horse. It seems in the guidlines of both there is a lot of talk of them not wanting to read unsolicited submission but if I send one they want me to sign a release agreement. What are the odds that my submission will be read rather than thrown out unopened? Also they say that if I am working with a colaborator both of us need to sign the agreement. If I paid the artist upfront for his work is he a collaborator or someone that is working for me? Does this make a difference?

Guess I'm going to have to do some bubble bursting...sorry.

New writers are about as much in demand by the major comic publishers as cases of colitis. It's been that way for more than 15 years.

The same thing applies to creator-owned properties. Marvel and DC simply aren't interested. And Image is not so much a publisher as a fulfillment house.

As far as Dark Horse is concerned, you'd need to have major credentials for them to even respond to a query.

Dynamite operates on a subjective form of marquee value names and blatant nepotism...not to mention they're currently being sued by Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. for trademark infringement.

The day of the floppies is pretty much over...it makes much more sense to turn your series into a graphic novel or series of graphic novels.

Say ones series is a graphic novel. what is the best way to go about it? I assume it is trying to find an agent for the project, but what other are options are there?

Unless you already have some kind of published credentials in the field, most agents will want to see art accompanying the submission package.

Neither they or publishers are in the business of matching writers up with artists.

I would suggest putting together a package that includes an overview of the series, model sheets of the main characters and at least three pages of continuity, preferably six.

No matter what they say, most agents aren't going read a full graphic novel script from an unknown.

This is a visual medium, so you should focus on that when submitting to an agent.

Been lucky enough to have a few comics published. It isn't like the prose market at all. No one looks at scripts. Forget it. You need to find an artist and get a submission packet together. You have to show the publisher what you're bringing to the table. Even then, they'll probably ignore you. Going to conventions and meeting editors will help too.

Your best bet might be to self-publish. There are a lot of avenues to do this now and it will show editors that you can finish a project. You have no idea how many people who say they want to make comics fade away as soon as they see just how much work is involved. It's not all Hollywood movies and piles of cash.You really have to want to make comics for it to happen.

Also, be prepared to pay your artist.

Can you elaborate more on the submission package mentioned above?

This is something I've been mulling over for a while now.

Do you get digital copies of the required art from your artist, and print it out for each package?

Are there houses that will accept e-submissions?

I would imagine most houses accept e-submissions at this juncture.

To prose and screenplay writers wanting to give comics a try, I want to quote:

Fedora said:

It isn't like the prose market at all.

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It shocks and angers some who come from prose publishing -- and artists wish it were otherwise too -- but the majority of publishers don't pay an advance, and those that do don't pay much. Likely you'll have to pay an artist out of your own pocket. Basically, it is tough on writers.

Bicyclefish said:

It shocks and angers some who come from prose publishing -- and artists wish it were otherwise too -- but the majority of publishers don't pay an advance, and those that do don't pay much.

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That depends on who you are and your track record.

But yeah--it's an extremely specialized discipline.

A couple of established novelists I know whose paying work has become very sporadic since Black Wednesday decided to break into the graphic novel field--and they had no idea of how to do it.

They just couldn't adjust to a new form of story-telling.

The irony is...for years they sneered at graphic novels as being little more than "funny books" appealing only to a fringe market and now it's one of the few areas of publishing that have remained halfway healthy.

@Rob Lefebvre: go on Digital Webbing and attempt to hook up with an artist. the number of writers looking for artists outnumbers artists looking for writers by quite a bit, to the extent that writers make self-referential posts about it. You can also look on Pencil Jack (or PencilJack, I forget) which I haven't tried or even Craigslist. I got excellent results with Craigslist, surprisingly enough, though the style of the artists who responded did not mach that particular idea.

one tip: don't just mention the genre of your idea. tease them with a little bit of the idea. in my Digital Webbing experience, artists with completely wrong drawing styles (for that particular idea) and some incompetents will respond, so you have to wade through them. make sure that you have a good pitch, though.

MJRevell said:

Can you elaborate more on the submission package mentioned above?

This is something I've been mulling over for a while now.

Do you get digital copies of the required art from your artist, and print it out for each package?

Are there houses that will accept e-submissions?

Click to expand...

Sorry. Was away. Check out the submission guidelines on publisher's websites. Usually they want something like 5 pages of completed art, a pitch that includes the overall story and who your audience is as well as how YOU plan on marketing the book, and sometimes character descriptions. A tip: Marvel and DC don't accept submissions. Hit the indies like Image and Arcana.

Axler said:

That depends on who you are and your track record.

But yeah--it's an extremely specialized discipline.

A couple of established novelists I know whose paying work has become very sporadic since Black Wednesday decided to break into the graphic novel field--and they had no idea of how to do it.

They just couldn't adjust to a new form of story-telling.

The irony is...for years they sneered at graphic novels as being little more than "funny books" appealing only to a fringe market and now it's one of the few areas of publishing that have remained halfway healthy.

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It really is a different craft than writing a novel. I also know a number of prose writers who floundered a bit when making the switch. In fact, I was one of them! It took me years to sell my first comic.

Fedora said:

It took me years to sell my first comic.

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Which was..?

Outsider here. Former newspaper cartoonist (small time). Present writer of prose.

<dumb question alert>
Where are the kinds of books mentioned in this thread sold?
</dumb>
I remember as a kid that every drug store, news stand, etc., had a rack of comic books. For a dime apiece. But I don't see that today.

Al Stevens said:

Where are the kinds of books mentioned in this thread sold?

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Ye Olde Comic Book Shoppe.



Most midway-sized cities have at least one...and that's down from 20 years ago when most midway-sized cities had at least three.

Regular line comics of the kind you remember--now referred to in the trade as "floppies"--are vanishing fast, their publication restricted to three or four major publishers.

But they haven't been sold for a dime in nigh-on to 50 years.

However, graphic novels can be found in both the Ye Olde Comic Book Shoppe and in regular bookstores.

They've never been sold for a dime.

Axler said:

Which was..?

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Right here. This was 2007. http://forbiddenplanet.co.uk/blog/2007/one-last-song/ One LAst Song was far from being a hit, but it got some very nice press. It was also a major learning experience when it came to producing a book, pitching to a publisher, marketing, and dealing with Diamond.

Prior to that I had a short in an anthology called Hope: New Orleans. It received good reviews and helped raise money for the Red Cross. It was in Previews and sold fairly well, but wasn't really a "sale" since I was a member of the group that published it.

After One Last Song, I took time away from comics. When I came back I had a short featured in an online anthology from APE Entertainment. I am currently writing an ongoing that will debut sometime later this year and have co-written two graphic novels that have been picked up by a sizable indie publisher. These last three projects are still under NDA and I'm just waiting for the OK to announce them.

Small world. I'm in the Sequential Pulp group on FB.

Nice!

Axler said:

Nice!

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Thank you!

By the way, I used to work in an independent bookstore and we sold A LOT of your Outlanders and Deathlands books.

Well...after 15 years of writing 'em, can't say I miss the grind much. Much more funner to be back working in the graphic narrative.

Axler said:

Ye Olde Comic Book Shoppe.

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someone divided the history of American comic books into the Drugstore Age, the Comic Store Age and the Bookstore Age.

Is it acceptable to pitch a comic before it's completed - as long as you know what it is and where it's going?

If a house only ask for a sample of pages, and not the entire script, could you write the submission package, get everything together, and send it out?

Or is it frowned upon hugely?

MJRevell said:

Is it acceptable to pitch a comic before it's completed - as long as you know what it is and where it's going?

If a house only ask for a sample of pages, and not the entire script, could you write the submission package, get everything together, and send it out?

Or is it frowned upon hugely?

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Generally, that's acceptable. However, you should check each publisher's submission guideline, case by case. Since everyone's doing everything differently in comic industry, there's really no actual go-to protocol like normal book publishing industry.

Generally publishers want a complete synopsis -- beginning, middle, and end, omitting unnecessary details of the entire story -- and the first five to eight pages. Some require the creative team in your pitch is the one that will actually work on your book(s), i.e. any team changes require publisher approval.

If you're considering submitting to an agent, though, according to the experiences of others, you'll need the full script.

Bicyclefish said:

Generally publishers want a complete synopsis -- beginning, middle, and end, omitting unnecessary details of the entire story -- and the first five to eight pages. Some require the creative team in your pitch is the one that will actually work on your book(s), i.e. any team changes require publisher approval.

If you're considering submitting to an agent, though, according to the experiences of others, you'll need the full script.

Click to expand...

But if you submit the first five to eight pages (and the rest is not complete) will they mind that there is still work to do, or do they expect to be able to see the full script?

Do they buy the comic based just off the proposal? Ie - do they buy the idea?

Or do you need the complete comic, like you need the complete manuscript in the novel world?